Utils: Oodles or Toodles?

Years ago when I was enrolled in a microeconomics course, I was introduced to an odd, yet intriguing word that I have recalled and referenced many times throughout my life. Overall, I found most business courses to be a bore with everything centering around the almighty dollar. It is probably for this reason that I was far more interested in the philosophical side of supply and demand than the other financial hubbub and is also why I gravitated towards that strange peculiar little word: util.

As explained in the course, a util is a hypothetical unit of measurement representing the level of satisfaction or contentment. To better illustrate this concept, examples always included people in high-paying occupations of one extreme, choosing to change careers and accept a much lesser paying job of another extreme. A lawyer, for instance, may forfeit his/her six-figure salary in order to start a bakery to make cookies, because the increase in utils was more significant than the decrease in dollars. I must admit that while stories of people climbing their way up the ladder in the business world will always be impressive to me, the most inspiring will perhaps always be the ones involving those who appear to climb down a rung or two in order to find their feet and their place upon this earth. However, while I agree with the old adage that “money can’t buy happiness,” I also know that there are times when it could certainly make the pursuit of happiness a little easier and less stressful. Utility bills (or “Utility Williams,” as I like to call them since they and I aren't so chummy) are far less philosophical than utils. By contrast, their increase is not a reflection of satisfaction nor contentment by any means, but is instead indirectly proportional. Consequently, the daydreamers of the world are often faced with the difficult decision as to whether their need for oodles of utils is great enough to make them say "Toodles!" to their humdrum and/or stressful careers and start anew. Sometimes, I think our right brains are just waiting for our left brains to give in and say, “You have my blessings,” so that we can pursue the road that is sometimes less prosperous, yet more fulfilling. Either way, our jobs nor careers should be what define us, and our level of success should never be measured in currency nor tangible gain.